The Sweet Struggle: A Maine Cook's Gummy Candy Journey

In the world of cooking, not every dish turns out perfect. This is a story about someone who tried to make gummy candies at home. It wasn't easy. They faced many problems. The candies stuck to the molds. They didn't look right. Some were too hard, others too soft. The colors were off. The taste was not good. It was a struggle. The person used different ingredients. They tried sugar, juice, and coconut milk. They used gelatin at first, but it made the candies too bouncy. They switched to agar-agar, which is made from seaweed. It's vegetarian and easier to work with. But even with these changes, the candies didn't turn out right. They looked for advice online. They found complex instructions with strange words. It was like reading a science textbook. They didn't understand it. They felt frustrated. They wondered why they started this in the first place. But they didn't give up. They kept trying. They learned about the history of gummy candies. They found out that gummy bears were invented in Germany in the 1920s. They understood why people love gummy candies. They have bright colors and a chewy texture. But their candies didn't have these qualities. A chef they knew gave them advice. She said that making gummy candies is tricky. It depends on many things like humidity and temperature. She suggested that it's better to buy gummy candies instead of making them at home. But she encouraged them to keep trying. In the end, they accepted that their candies were not gummies. They were more like jelly. They made a recipe for "Not-a-Gummy Jellies". They learned that it's okay to fail in the kitchen. They can always try again or just buy a bag of Haribo gummies.